MEDIA | HIGHLY COMMENDED | MEDIACOM UKMASTERFOODS - MARS | BELIEVE

CHALLENGE
Despite Mars being an iconic British brand with a universal appeal, recent communication had failed to connect with consumers and sales have been in a decline for several years.

INSIGHT
Consumers constantly play back the fact that, due to its heritage, Mars represents positivity.

IDEA
We wanted to tap into the World Cup fever in an unusual way that reflected the "feel-good optimism" of the Mars brand and project the positivity of the Mars brand in a way that is fitting for the Brits' particular brand of optimism.

We renamed Mars "Believe" for the duration of the World Cup, turning the Mars bars into a currency for optimism, and encouraged England fans to buy Believe bars to show their support for the team.

ACTIVATION
We used the Sun as a core media partner to launch the Believe Bars, and maintained an ongoing editorial presence, keeping readers posted on the Believe-o-meter and by reporting back on our stunts in Germany. A "Believe-Mobile" toured England to collect messages of support; we created a Believe-athon with Uri Geller, and developed a bespoke website www.marsbelieve.com.

RESULTS

Sales during the period were up a massive 50% year on year - and the rate of sale remained high for longer than average.

Amazing achievement in a category that is in decline at rate of 5% y-o-y.

Media picked up on the campaign instantly, delivering over 250 pieces of PR coverage.

More than 250,000 consumers visited the website and talked about the campaign in chat rooms and blogs.

REASON WHY
This was outstanding work being led by a media agency, with a complex framework of communication built across the insight of England's hopeless optimism at every World Cup. In terms of activation the in-store/trade and sales work was very very strong, too.